Necktie knot device



Filed Jan. 9,

INVENTOR SIDNEY C, PULITZER BY www Mm. #a/:

ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,365,726 NECKTIE KNT DEVICE Sidney C. Pulitzer, New Grleans, La., assigner to Wembley, Inc., New rleans, La., a corporation of Louisiana Filed Jan. 9, 1967, Ser. No. 608,019 2 tlaims. (Cl. 2-153) ABSTRACT F THE DISCLGSURE A device for supporting and forming the knot portion of a pre-tied four-in-hand necktie, the body of the device being made of a plastic material and having wings extending lateraliy from a central part, the upper parts of the Wings extending upwardly and laterally suiciently to engage the inside of the horizontal fold of the shirt collar, the central part of the device having a rearwardly inclined lower part which receives the pointed end of a pin which extends rearwardly and upwardly from the central part, the combined effect of the wing extensions and the rear end of the pin being to force the front of the knot to be inclined rearwardly and upwardly, giving more of the appearance of a hand-tied necktie. The material and thickness of the wings are su-ch that they may be molded by pressure of the fingers and will hold their adjusted shape, thereby permitting a variety of different knot shapes to be formed by the user to accommodate the knot to any fashion or style of collar.

Summary of the invention This invention relates generally to articles of neckwear and, more particularly, to an improved supporting and forming device for the pre-tied knot of a four-in-hand necktie.

The proper tying of the knot of a four-in-hand necktie is not only frequently time-consuming but requires a degree of skill which is often lacking in many wearers of neckties. It has accordingly been a common practice to provide neckties with a pre-formed knot and fastening means for releasably attaching the pre-tied knot to the collar of the wearers shirt. Although devices of this type known to the prior art are generally satisfactory, they have certain drawbacks and disadvantages which limit the scope of their application, among which are that the shape of the knot is fixed and cannot be modified to any appreciable extent and may thus frequently not meet the desires of the wearer, and that the position and orientation of the knot do not present the appearance of a handtied knot.

It is a principal object of the present invention to provide an improved device for supporting and forming the pre-tied knot of a four-in-hand necktie, which is constructed of material which permits modification of the shape of the knot in accordance with the wishes of the wearer, which is so constructed that it presents the pretied knot with the same appearance as a hand-tied knot, and which includes means which facilitate the assembly of the necktie fabric on the device and thereafter holds it in place.

Description of the drawings FIG. 1 is a side view of a device for supporting and forming the pre-tied knot of a four-in-hand necktie, according to the invention;

FlG. 2 is a View which is similar to FIG. 1 but shows the collar attaching device in attaching position;

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the device;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view thereof, and

FIG. 5 is a partial, and partially broken away, view of Cil 3,355,726 Patented Jan. 30, 1968 ICe Detailed description of the invention The device provided by the invention for supporting and forming the pre-tied knot 2 of a four-in-hand necktie comprises a body member 4 which is of generally triangular shape as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, having wings 6, 8 which diverge laterally and rearwardly from a generally Vertical central part 1li having a rearwardly inclined lower end part 11. The upper edges 12, 14 of the wings are disposed generally at right angles to the vertical axis of the central part of the body member and terminate at their outer ends in points 16, 18 which are defined at each laterai end of the body member by the intersection of the generally horizontal upper edges 12, 14 and the upwardly diverging lower edges 20, 22. The upper edges of the wings do not meet -centrally of the body member but terminate short of the median line of the central part thereof and intersect with downwardly converging edges 24, Z6 forming a generally V-shaped notch in the upper central part of the body member which accommodates part of the latch mechanism by which the knot is attached to a collar. The front surface of the central part of the body member, from which the wings diverge laterally and rearwardly, is provided with vertical, laterally spaced, forwardly extending ridges 28, 30 which are of decreasing height from the upper part of the body member to the lower part thereof, terminating just above the rearwardly turned part 11 and defining between them a vertically extending recess for receiving part of the latch assembly which is provided for attaching the body member to the neckband of a shirt.

This attaching assembly comprises a metal plate 32 which is attached at its lower end by a hollow rivet 34 to the rearwardly inclined part 11 of the central part of the body member and extends upwardly from such attachment along and in engagement with the front surface of the central part. The upper part of this plate is formed with parallel, spaced slits 36, 38 extending vertically thereof and of the central part of the body member and dening between them a resilient tongue 40 which is positioned between the ridges 2S, 30 on the front surface of the central part of the body member. The upper ends of the plate and the tongue are adjacent each other and are formed with facing arcuate parts 42, 44 which receive between them the pivot part 46 of a latch member 48 which is stable in two positions, the first being a raised, un-latched position which is shown in FIG. 1 and the second being a lower, latching position which is shown in FIG. 2 and in which the latch member is positioned inside the neckband of a shirt, as shown in FG. 5.

Means are provided by the invention for facilitating the assembly of the necktie fabric onto the supporting and forming device and for holding the knot in such position when the necktie is being worn that it closely resembles a hand-tied necktie. Such means comprise the rearwardly inclined lower end part 11 of the central part of the body member 4 and a pin Sti which extends upwardly and rearwardly from this rearwardly inclined part, terminating at its rear end in a ball 52. The front end of this pin is pointed, as shown at 54, and this pointed part is received within the hollow rivet 34 with a tight fit after the pin has been inserted in the rivet in assembling the fabric to the supporting device. Between its ends the pin is provided with a rearwardly convex, umbrellashaped part 56 having a serrated forward edge. Co-operating with the pin 50 to produce the appearance of a hand-tied knot, the wings 6, d of the body member are extended upwardly and rearwardly more than in known devices and sufficiently to engage the inside of the hori- Zontal fold 60 of the shirt collar 62 when the necktie is worn. t

In still further accordance with the invention the body' member 4, and particularly the wing parts thereof, are formed of a material, of such a thickness, that the wing parts may beY molded into drfferent shapes and configurations by the pressure of the lingers, and will retain the shape to which they are molded until this is changed by further molding pressure.

In assembling a necktie to the supporting and forming device provided by the invention, the pin t: is removed'. Y

from its position within the hollow rivet 34??, the latch member 48 is put into the raised, un-latched position. shown in FIG. 1, and the necktie fabric is then wrapped and formed about the body and attached parts of the supporting and forming device, covering the entire de- Vice except the latch member. The pointed end of the pin is now forced through the fabric covering the rear part of the body member and into the hollow rivet, where it is rmly held by its tight fit. The serrated forward edge of the umbrella-shaped part 56 of the pin engages the rear surface of the necktie fabric, which is thereby held between this serrated edge and the rearwardly inclined part 11 of the body member, thus adding to the stability of the knot. The wearer may at any time, by pressure of the fingers, mold the plastic body member in any desired way to adjust the size or shape of the knot.

It has been found that the position and orientation of a pre-tied four-in-hand knot, when worn, do not resemble sufficiently those of a manually tied knot. In order to produce this latter appearance, the wings of the body portion of the present invention are extended laterally beyond the lateral extension of the Wings of known devices and sufficiently to engage the inside of the fold defining the upper edge of the collar with which the necktie is worn, thus holding the upper part of the knot in a rearward position. In addition, the ball on the rear end ofthe pin 50 engages the front of the neckband ofthe shirt or collar, or the button at the front of the neckband, thus holding the lower part of the knot forwardly. The combination of these two features causes the lower part of the pre-formed knot to protrude forwardly of the upper part ofthe knot, thus inclining the front surface of the knot upwardly and rearwardly and giving more closely the appearance of a hand-tied knot.

I claim:

1. A supporting and forming device for the knot of a four-in-hand necktie, comprising a body member having a central part and laterally extending and rearwardly diverging wings having upper edges, an attaching assembly connected to the central part and extending vertically ,thereof and including a latch member which is movable from an upper un-latched position to a lower latched position in which it is positioned rearwardly of the neckband of a shirt when in use, lthe lower end part of the central part of the body member being inclined rearwardly and having a forwardly pointed pin slidably mounted therein and extending rearwardly and upwardly therefrom to engage at its rear end the neckband of a Shirt when the necktie is worn, in which the upper edges of the wings of the body member are extended upwardly and rearwardly sufficiently to engage the inside of the upper,

fold of the shirt collar when the necktie is worn and hold the upper part of the knot in a rearward position, whereby the pin and the extended parts of the wings cooperate to hold the'lower part of the'knot forwardly of the upper part when the necktie is worn.

2. A supporting and forming device for the knot of a four-in-hand necktie, comprising a body member Ahavin(Y a central part and laterally extending and rearwardly diverging wings having upper edges, an attaching assembly connected to the central part and extending vertically thereof and including a latch member which is movable from an upper un-latched position to a lower latched position in which it is positioned rearwardly of the neckband of a shirt when in use, the lower end part of the central part of the body member being inclined rearwardly and having a pin extending rearwardly and upwardly therefrom to engage at its rear end the neckband of a shirt when the necktie is worn, the upper edges of the wings of the body member being extended upwardly and rearwardly suiciently to engage the inside of the upper fold of the shirt collar when the necktie is worn and hold the upper part of the knot in a rearward position, whereby the pin and the extended parts of the wings co-operate to hold the lower part of the knot forwardly of the upper part when the necktie is worn, the pin having a pointed forward end received in an opening in the lower end of the central part whereby the pin may be pushed through the neektie fabric in assembling the necktie to the supporting and forming device, and also having a circular, umbrella-shaped rearwardly convex member mounted concentrieally thereon between its ends and having a forward serrated edge to engage the necktie fabric at the rear of the knot.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,972,750 2/1961 Kanter 2 153 3,220,015 11/1965 Kanter et al. 2-153 3,222,684 12/1965 Kanter et al. 2-153 PATRCK D. LAWSON, Primary Examiner. 

